Rohit, Ishant Sharma to miss first two Australia Tests, also doubtful for remaining two: BCCI source
New Delhi, Nov 24: India's star opener Rohit Sharma and pacer Ishant Sharma will miss the first two Tests against Australia and are also doubtful for the remaining two after it was conveyed to the BCCI that the duo will require close to a month to be match fit.
The two, who are undergoing rehabilitation at the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru, are already out of contention for the limited-overs leg of the series, which begins with the ODIs on Friday.
They were kept in the Test squad for the series starting on December 17 but tough quarantine rules have made their availability uncertain.
"The NCA has given a report that both Rohit and Ishant will take at least another 3 to 4 weeks to get match fit," a Board source told PTI on Tuesday.
Rohit, while talking to PTI last week, had stated that his hamstring injury is fine now and he is only working on strength and conditioning to be battle-ready at the NCA.
Ishant, on the other hand, is recovering from a side strain.
"Even if they travel now they will have 'hard quarantine' since they will travel by commercial flight. Hard quarantine means not being able to train during the 14 days like the whole team," the source said.
"So, now if only Cricket Australia can convince the government and allow them to train during quarantine," he added.
It is learnt that Shreyas Iyer, who is part of the limited-overs squad, could be asked to stay back as cover for Rohit.
The Indian team, which landed here after the IPL earlier this month on a chartered flight, was allowed to train in quarantine as Australia battled a fresh wave of COVID-19 cases.
National coach Ravi Shastri had on Sunday stated that the two cricketers' chances of playing the Test series hinge on whether they are able to board a flight to Australia within this week.
"If you need to play in the Test series or any red-ball cricket, you've got to be on the flight in the next three or four days. If you aren't, then it's going to be tough," he had said.
The four-Test series, after the day-night opener in Adelaide, will move to Melbourne (December 26 to 30), followed by games in Sydney (January 7 to 11) and Brisbane (January 15 to 19).
India will be without skipper Virat Kohli after the first Test as he will return to the country to be there for the birth of his first child.
The visitors had won the 2018-19 series 2-1.
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Bengaluru: Two arrested for duping man of Rs 48 lakh with fake ayurvedic cure
Bengaluru (PTI): Two men have been arrested for allegedly cheating a city resident of Rs 48 lakh on the pretext of providing high-quality ayurvedic medicines to cure his health issues, police said on Wednesday.
The accused were identified as Vijay Pradhan Chitodiya (42) and Manoj Singh Chitodiya (29), both natives of Miraj taluk in Sangli district, Maharashtra, police said.
With the arrests, police seized 17 types of ayurvedic medicines, a tempo traveller allegedly used in the offence, and Rs 19.50 lakh in cash. The total value of the seized drugs, cash and vehicle is estimated at Rs 23.50 lakh, they added.
The investigation revealed that the duo had been setting up roadside tents across Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and other parts of the country, cheating people by offering low-quality medicines for various health issues, a senior police officer said.
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The case came to light on November 22 after the victim, a resident of Whitefield, filed a complaint at the Jnanabharathi police station.
In his complaint, he said he had been suffering from sexual health issues since his marriage three years ago. Seeking treatment, he approached a roadside tent near KLE Law College, where medicines for urological ailments were being sold.
"One of the men at the tent told him that their ‘guruji’ provides high-quality ayurvedic medicines for such problems. ‘Guruji’ was called to the spot and introduced to him. He claimed he could supply premium medicine costing Rs 1 to Rs 2 lakh per gram, and collected Rs 48 lakh from him," the officer said.
However, the accused allegedly supplied poor-quality medicine, which caused adverse health effects, thereby cheating him, the officer added.
Based on the complaint, a case of cheating was registered at the Jnanabharathi police station.
During the investigation, Vijay, who posed as the ‘Guruji’, was traced to Mahabubnagar in Telangana and arrested on November 27, police said.
During questioning, he allegedly confessed to the crime and identified his accomplice. Manoj was subsequently arrested in Cyberabad, Telangana, on December 1, they added.
